From this morning's Earlybird:

• "Kazakhstan refuses to let Borat have the last word on its image," The Hill reports. "The Central Asian republic's foreign affairs ministry inked a $1.5 million deal with a Washington lobbying firm, according to records recently filed with the Justice Department, with a partial goal of combating the image presented in the blockbuster film 'Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan.'"

• "The intensifying health care debate is following Members of Congress home to their districts during this week's recess," Roll Call (subscription) reports. "A long list of industry and interest groups have taken out advertising spots, are activating grass-roots networks and are planning Member meetings outside the Beltway."

• "Horse trading in Washington is infamous. But it's rare to catch a glimpse of the horse in the midst of the trade in real time," Politico reports. "Friday was one of those rare exceptions when the powerful lobby for seniors, the AARP, sent a memo to Senate officials threatening to yank support for the chamber's health committee's version of reform if it didn't get what it wanted on another provision in the bill related to biogeneric drugs."